Colorado Springs News, Sports & Business

LETTERS: Emergency care in Colorado; Manitou pot

Emergency care in Colorado Are we in Colorado doing everything we can to address access to emergency care in our state? Yes and no. According to the state-by-state report card on America's Emergency Care Environment just released by the American College of Emergency Physicians, the state ranked...

Are we in Colorado doing everything we can to address access to emergency care in our state? Yes and no. According to the state-by-state report card on America's Emergency Care Environment just released by the American College of Emergency Physicians, the state ranked fifth in the country, but received only a D+ in Access to Emergency Care. By contrast, the state was first in the nation in the Medical Liability Environment, with a grade of A.

Colorado's poor showing in the Access to Emergency Care category is because of numerous barriers to health care overall, and substance abuse and psychiatric care specifically. The state also has the sixth lowest rate of staffed inpatient beds, which leads to serious crowding in emergency departments.

Colorado's first-place winning A in the category of Medical Liability Environment is due to legislation allowing health care providers to apologize to patients without those apologies being admissible as evidence of wrongdoing and $300,000 caps on non-economic damages.

We do so many things right here, yet much remains to be done. Patients, policymakers, health care providers, business and hospitals need to work together to improve our weaknesses.

David W. Ross, Penrose-St.Francis Health Services, Colorado Springs

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People of conviction won't be silenced

I have to take exception to Cindy Culp's letter about egos on Jan. 18. In it, she detailed her dismay at the contentiousness, and the disagreements that have been in the news lately over politics.

At first, I focused on what I thought was her haughty view that these differences were petty and lacked the leadership necessary to command arbitration over the "squabbling"; and that the spectacle of the arguments was "messy"; sort of a motherly intervention between two of her children.

Then I realized Culp's letter was representative of a lot of Americans (educated in government schools lately) that don't see these confrontations for the philosophical battles of conscience and the future that I do. The statist, bullying, and otherwise ham-handed behavior of the Democrat state representatives that were recalled, stood in direct opposition to the ideals of the Colorado identity, and there was a remedy for such arrogance, even in gerrymandered districts.

People of conviction, that have a deeply rooted sense of the American way, won't be silenced here. Not like other countries that enforce politically correct dogma (Marxism). The "messiness" you're watching isn't about "egos and personalities," it's about protecting America from a takeover, and I won't surrender easily, just because you're "turned off."

James Davis, Colorado Springs

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Then they are not leaders

In answer to "Leaders can not put aside egos": Then they are not leaders.

Leaders need an open mind, to be willing to listen, and ask others for ideas.

Then and only then are they leaders.

Martha Fabian, Calhan

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Thousands of organizations, causes

Recently a prominent citizen of our community announced in a letter to The Gazette his resignation from a venerable local men's social club to which he had belonged for decades. His reason was to protest the organization's continued restriction of its membership to men only, despite declining numbers. Presumably by allowing important local women to join the club it could bolster its membership and restore its historic role as perhaps the leading influence over local affairs, both political and social. Not so.

This "solution" is rather like rescinding the prohibition against aerial cloud seeding when there's a hole in the dam. It's completely irrelevant. There are two fundamental reasons why exclusive community social groups are declining and have done so for years. These days we are all badgered incessantly to join or participate in literally thousands of organizations and causes.

Be a board member of the Wuthering Heights home owners association, join the fight against the scourge of freckles, volunteer to serve on the committee to research sheep flatulence, "friend" or be a friend of Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Linkedin, Flikr, join the Association of Rubber Chicken Manufacturers, be a member of the Nail Biters Union, the Tree Huggers Union, the Civil Union.

We're all so overwhelmed with our chosen involvement in numerous organizations and missions that belonging to an exclusive social club is way down on our list of priorities.

And furthermore belonging to such a group is now pejorative thanks to the 1960's social revolution where everyone is supposed to hold hands in a circle and sing Kumbaya.

We're all tired of these involvements and are just trying to find a way to carve out a little time for ourselves, to be a couch potato, to quietly examine our navels. So, it's too bad that the aforementioned club has been unfairly skewered, had its name besmirched. I believe it was Groucho Marx who said "I don't care to belong to a club that would have me as a member." Me either.

Tuck Aikin, Colorado Springs

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Manitou and prudes of the plains

Please! The Gazette chastising Manitou for selling dope is a return to Limit Street. The good and proper citizens of Colorado Springs huffing and puffing over Old Colorado City dance halls and brothels.

I don't see The Gazette reeling over the shadowy images cast by mega-liquor stores. Oh wait, pickling one's liver is acceptable now, isn't it? Good for Manitou. May they reap the rewards of their new found tax base.

They've never been particularly plussed by the prudes of the plains or the pontificators of the newspaper.